Redspire Latest News

Engaging The Social Customer

2010-07-01T06:54:00.000-07:00

With the current explosion in social Networking every business is looking at these new channels (to a greater or lesser extent) to see how best they might be tapped into to help drive new business opportunities.

A social networking strategy has gone straight to the top of the agenda for many businesses but for others it is still uncharted territory.

This white paper from Microsoft helps organisations by providing a useful guide to social networking and how it might be better leveraged as part of an overall CRM strategy. Why not drop us an email and we will arrange to send you a copy of the white paper.

UK Retail CRM Forum

2010-06-30T07:29:00.000-07:00

On the back of some feedback from our clients we have decided to form a special interest group called The UK Retail CRM Forum. The group is designed to bring together senior retail industry leaders who have a keen interest in CRM developments - providing them with a forum where members are able to share ideas and ask questions of each other for mutual benefit. Membership will be limited to those who are currently working in a relevant job where their membership of the Group will be valuable.

Why not take a look at the group and if you think this might be of interest to you and that you might be able to contribute - please drop us an email and we will process your application for joining.

£8bn Growth Forecast for Online

2010-06-17T05:04:00.002-07:00

According to a recent report published by Paypal, online retail is set to continue growing at an astounding pace with an increase of £8bn forecast by the end of 2012 as compared to £3.3bn for store retail over the same period.

With over 10 million people now shopping online every week (up 1.6 million from 2009) - a major factor in the growth is felt to be the drive by consumers to seek out "Broadband Bargains".

Whilst the mood is still considered cautious overall, the findings do point towards an increasing optimism with 10% of shoppers expecting to increase their spending over the next 6 months as opposed to 5% the previous year.

The report goes on to predict that in the event of continued economic downturn, online retail will grow even more significantly as consumers look to save both time and money. Indeed, one aspect of the forecast predicts that one in every eight pounds will be spent online by 2012 .

Click here for more on this story.

CNP Fraud - Encouraging Signs

2010-06-17T05:04:00.001-07:00

According to a recent report from Financial Fraud Action UK (previously APACS) - 2009 saw the fist decline in losses from fraudulent transactions using credit and debit cards in that last 10 years. Good news on the face of it but with losses to retailers still totalling some £440.3m this clearly remains a big challenge to many.

The losses attributable to Cardholder Not Present (CNP) Fraud accounts for over half of this total with £266.4m of fraudulent transactions coming via the phone, Internet or mail order.

The decline has largely been attributed to increasingly sophisticated screening and prevention tools and the introduction of Mastercard, SecureCode and Verified by Visa.

Retailers must remain vigilant however as the fraudsters will continue to find more and more sophisticated ways to get round the counter measures that are introduced.

For a view as to how Redspire can help with your fraud prevention strategy, why not give us a call on 0845 226 8170.

Top 10 Online Trends

2010-06-17T04:47:00.001-07:00

Recent research conducted by Verdict Consulting identified 10 key online trends for 2010 and some of the most critical actions that retailers must take to grow their businesses post-recession.

The report identifies the following:

Growth will be more difficult. The channel is slowly maturing - many easy wins now maximised. Retailers must think strategically about maximising online revenue.
The recession has impacted. A critical lesson for the online channel will be to add value and persuade customers to trade up in what they buy
Acquiring new customers will be tougher. As acquisition becomes more challenging, retailers should switch more marketing budget to maintaining existing customers and driving repeat business.
There will be more mouths to feed. Deep knowledge of your competitors online offerings coupled with sophisticated testing of different customer acquisition strategies will be crucial.
Expectations will rise. Retailers must focus on adding more value than they have done in the past.
Loyalty can be increased. Those retailers that offer a combination of one-off tactical deals to excite the customer, combined with long-term strategic programmes with extra value benefits to lock in customers will have a winning strategy.
Conversion will be key. Website personalisation is a key way in which conversion can be grown. If 'cherry-picked' products are pushed through to relevant customers when they visit a website they are far more likely to make a purchase.
Basket abandonment is here to stay. Providing clear, accurate and detailed information on products, prices and additional charges is a key way to reduce basket abandonment.
Customers will be channel blind. Those retailers that offer multiple consumer touch points will see benefits; though branding must be consistent across all channels.
It's more than about selling. To boost revenue, retailers should consider monetising their web pages by linking with third parties that offer products and services that suit their target market.